- Psychedelics Like Psilocybin, MDMA Tied to Higher Odds for Schizophrenia
- Big Post-Election Surge Seen in Online Sales of Morning-After Pills
- Canadian Teen Hospitalized in Critical Condition With Bird Flu
- Liquor, Wine, Beer: Which Comes With the Worst Lifestyle?
- Fatty Liver Disease Now Affects 4 in 10 U.S. Adults
- Good Night’s Sleep Wards Off High Blood Pressure in Teens
- Telehealth Can Help Prevent Suicide in Those at High Risk
- Most Parents Don’t Ask About Unlocked Guns in Homes Their Kids Visit
- Vitamin D Supplements Could Help Lower Blood Pressure in Obese People
- Grandparents & Grandkids: Poll Shows Them Helping Each Other
Animal Trials Show Promise for Treating Eye Cancer
New findings about the genetic roots of eye melanoma could lead to more effective treatments, scientists say. They also report an existing drug shows benefits as a treatment for eye tumors in mice.
So-called uveal melanoma — cancer that attacks parts of the eye that contain pigment cells — affects about 2,000 people in the United States each year. If the cancer hasn’t spread, patients usually undergo radiation treatment and have the affected eye removed. Oftentimes, however, the cancer spreads to the liver and quickly kills patients.
The study, published in the May 29 online issue of the journal Cancer Cell, offers insight into genetic mutations found in about 70 percent of the eye tumors. It also reveals a pathway that could be a target for medications.
The researchers suggest an existing drug, verteporfin (brand name Visudyne), could be a possible treatment. Tests on mice are promising, the study authors noted.
“The beauty of our study is its simplicity,” said study co-author Kun-Liang Guan, professor of pharmacology at University of California, San Diego Moores Cancer Center. “The genetics of this cancer are very simple and our results have clear implications for therapeutic treatments for the disease.”
This cancer is “caused by a very simple genetic mechanism,” Guan said in a university news release. “And we have a drug that works on this mechanism. The clinical applications are very direct,” Guan added.
However, results achieved in animal studies are not always replicated in humans.
More information
For more about melanoma of the eye, visit the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
Source: HealthDay
Copyright © 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.